The New Spark
by Diamondsgirl101
Summary: Sequel to my first story, The Fire and the Sun. The quest is over, and Leo and Anne are reunited at long last. Where will life take them next? Let's find out. Leo/OC. -DISCONTINUED-
1. Chapter 1

**Ok sorry to bore you all with my notes and such, but I've got a few things to say:**

**1. first things first, this is my story and I will write it how I want it written. If you don't like it, is it really so hard to just go back to the page with all the stories and choose another one to read? Please don't read it if you don't like it, I won't be offended. I _will_ be offended if you choose to tell me all about how much you don't like it. Constructive criticism is welcome, but please don't send me hurtful reviews. I work very hard on this story and it really undermines my work when I get a review or message like that. Thanks ppl!**

**2. THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH TO ALL YOU PEOPLE WHO FAVORITED AND REVIEWED MY FIRST STORY! BECAUSE OF YOU WE ARE HERE! AT THE SEQUEL! YAHOO! Ok enough with the caps lol! But yeah thank you so much! this one's for all of you guys!**

**3. side note: Vrontí's name means "thunder" in Greek :D thought that was a nice touch.**

**I think I've bored you enough by now, so enjoy!**

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><p>Anne's POV<p>

What is it about flying that makes everything seem okay, anyway? When you have flying dreams, you feel free. When you're on the back of a pegasus, plunging through clouds at speeds that would give any sane parent a heart attack, you feel unstoppable, like nothing will ever get you down.

I reined in my mount ever so slightly as we began to near Camp Half-Blood. The morning's chill was starting to get to me. I held the reins one-handed for a second to pull the hood of my sweatshirt over my wavy blonde hair. My breath and the breath of Vrontí, the dark gray pegasus I was riding, were starting to come in visible clouds. With a sad sigh, I loosened my reins and encouraged Vrontí to start dropping altitude, heading back toward camp.

I'd been riding a lot more these last few months than pretty much ever. Before I'd come to camp my mom would joke that I was going to start taking my horse Diamond to school dances instead of a boy. Horses had been a huge part of my life. But then I found out I was a demigod and was whisked off to camp, where I'd discovered so much more about myself. I was a daughter of the Greek god Apollo. I was a good shot at archery and a force in Capture the Flag. I had a lot of siblings and so many new friends. And, might I add, I'm not as hopeless with boys as my mother probably feared.

There it was, the usual sadness I usually felt when I thought of my boyfriend, Leo Valdez. The son of Hephaestus, one of the chosen seven, the next hero of the world as I liked to call him, was off on a quest that would determine if the world would end or not, basically.

Heroes. They do that. But it didn't make my pain any easier to deal with.

Last I'd heard from him, he'd Iris-messaged me three nights ago. He'd been about to go into battle and had taken the time to IM me first.

"I'm sorry, I can't talk long," he'd said, smiling at me from behind the veil of mist. "Annabeth wants to get going. We don't have much time. I just wanted to say hi."

I loved him for not saying it outright, but I knew what he'd been thinking: _I just wanted to see you, because I might not come back alive. _

I hadn't talked to him since.

Subconsciously, I tightened my grip forcefully on the reins, making Vrontí pin his ears in annoyance. I rubbed his dark gray neck in apology, angry at myself. I didn't want to make myself believe it. It couldn't be true. Leo had to be okay.

_Get back to camp and ask Chiron if they've sent an IM, _I told myself. _You have been gone a while. _

I'd been doing this a lot, especially lately, taking a pegasus and losing myself in the clouds. I'd always found riding therapeutic, but riding a horse that could take you into the sky? Best feeling ever.

But even on a pegasus with an energy level like Vrontí's, I was bound to have to come back down eventually. I still had to eat and sleep and all that, but if I had my way, I would be flying forever, losing myself in the feeling that everything was okay.

Vrontí slowed, spreading his wings to land, and his hooves touched down. I urged him to keep cantering forward across the grass by the lake, knowing it wasn't good for him to come to a standstill after landing. He obliged, springing into a long-strided canter that was quite easy to sit to bareback.

We headed toward the pegasus stable and I pulled Vrontí back down to a walk, loosening the reins to let him stretch his neck. "You were such a good boy today," I told him, smiling and patting his neck. "That was a great way to start the morn—"

"Anne!"

I turned my head as my half-brother Scott came running across the grass, calling my name. "Anne! There you are!"

"What?" I asked, halting Vrontí and addressing him. "What's up?"

"Our lookouts saw it and spread the word!" Scott panted. "The _Argo II_ was spotted on the horizon fifteen minutes ago! They're coming back!"

My heart lurched with mingled excitement and fear. "Are you serious?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding?" Scott retorted. "Now the least you can do is give me a lift back down to the beach. I ran all the way around camp trying to find you."

"Fancy a gallop?" I responded. "Bareback?"

When Scott grimaced like, _No thanks! _I laughed and urged Vrontí forward into a gallop. Our time flying earlier didn't seem to have affected his energy much; he was more than happy to go for a run.

All I could think of while we galloped was, _Oh, gods, please let him be here and unhurt! _

My heart was racing as Vrontí and I neared the crowd that was gathering at the beach. There it was! The _Argo II was _here! I slowed Vrontí to a trot and slid from his back, tossing the reins over his head and leading him down onto the sand.

"Anne!" a voice called. It was my friend Ashley from the Aphrodite cabin, running toward me from the crowd gathered at the water. "They're back! Isn't it great? Hello, beautiful," she added to Vrontí, stroking his nose as we started to head toward the crowd.

Chiron was standing in full centaur form at the edge of the water, watching intently as five people departed from the ship. The first person stepped onto the sand, prompting an uproar of cheering from the crowd. It was Percy Jackson himself, looking none the worse for wear. He looked tired, but he smiled and greeted everybody as Annabeth left the ship and stood by his side, smiling widely. Jason and Piper left next holding hands, which made everybody cheer louder. Ashley left my side and rushed to greet her half-sister, leaving me holding Vrontí's reins, waiting…

My breath caught in my throat as the last person stepped down from the ship. But instead of going to greet the crowd, he stood on the spot, his dark brown eyes sweeping over the people as though he was searching for only one.

I thrust Vrontí's reins into the nearest hand and jogged in his direction. "Leo!"

His head turned and a smile broke out on his face. "Anne!"

I felt my feet leave the ground as he pulled me into a hug, twirling us around. He'd definitely gotten stronger, not to say that people normally have trouble lifting me! He looked a little taller too, his hair a little messier, his smile a little brighter.

"I missed you so much," I said, kissing him.

"I missed you too," he said, smiling and brushing a lock of my hair out of my face. "I'm so sorry I didn't IM as much as I probably should have, there were a lot of monsters—"

"No, no, I understand!" I interrupted. "The important thing is that you're here now."

He pulled back a little and made eye contact with me. "I'm here now," he said. "And I promise I'll never leave you again."

It was easy to tune out the excited cheering of the crowd behind us as Leo kissed me. I had waited way too long for this to be embarrassed now. As long as I had Leo back, nothing was ever going to get me down.


	2. Chapter 2

**OK, brief explanation: I'm gonna do like a time-lapse thing through the next few chapters. I was planning to smush everything into one chapter, but I'm much more limited with my time and energy (curse you geometry homework! :() and so I decided not to make you guys wait. Just bear in mind that this is all really a prologue sort of thing and that the REAL star of the story comes into play a little later. But for now, let's skip ahead a few years from where we last left off…**

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><p>Leo's POV<p>

_It'll be okay, _I thought nervously to myself._ It's got to be. What's the worst that can happen? _I grimaced. Best not to answer that. Keep a positive attitude.

Six years had passed since the quest. I was still head counselor of the Hephaestus cabin. Camp had become my home; I had nowhere else to go, and I didn't think I could bring myself to leave. To my dismay, Anne had managed to scrape together enough money to afford a couple years of college. She was now back at camp, and amazingly, we were still a couple even after the ups and downs of all these years.

And that brings me to now. Sitting on a log next to her as the camp bonfire blazed bright purple, reflecting the crowd's happy mood. I, on the other hand, wasn't feeling the mood. Instead of singing and gorging on marshmallows, I was taking deep breaths and trying not to let Anne notice how jumpy I was.

"Can we go for a walk?" I asked her as the song dwindled away to silence.

Anne turned to face me, looking a little surprised. "The bonfire's not over yet, but sure," she answered, smiling and brushing her long blonde ponytail off her shoulder. Taking care not to block anyone's view, we got up and scooted quickly out of the amphitheater.

"Where did you have in mind to go?" she asked, taking my hand. I cursed myself; I should have done that first.

"Nowhere in particular," I answered, trying to sound calm. My heart was hammering against my chest with nerves.

"Just a little stroll, then?" she said, smiling. "Sounds good to me."

That sounded pretty good to me too. It was dark out but we could still see where we were going. I was glad about that though; if how I felt was any indication of how my face looked, I was happy to stay in the shadows.

"It's so nice out tonight," Anne murmured. "There's a nice warm breeze."

"Yeah," I agreed, momentarily admiring the way the warm air was playing with her hair, which was tied back in a ponytail and now fell almost to her waist. I gently tugged her in the direction of the woods, and she followed me without complaint.

We walked underneath the cover of the trees and into more shadows. I know the place sounds creepy, but it was actually really nice. Even though the trees were blocking most of the wind, there was still warm air all around us. And the shadows were more gentle instead of cold and unfriendly. And they weren't too dark either; I could still see her, her pretty blue eyes shining as we kept walking through the forest.

"Where are we going, Leo?"

"It's not far," I promised, turning to face her without letting go of her hand. "Don't worry."

"I'm not worried," she assured me, smiling. As she walked through a shaft of light that was streaming through a gap in the branches of the trees overhead, I noticed a shimmer of silver at her collar. It made me smile. She still wore the necklace with the charm I'd given her when we were fifteen, the night before I'd left for the quest.

So much had changed since then, but so much had stayed the same. And, I realized, I was about to tip the scales, make a change, but for the better or for the worse I didn't know.

Not yet. I didn't know _yet_.

But I was willing to take the chance.

We reached our destination: a fallen log next to the creek that wound its way though the forest of Camp Half-Blood,

"Aw," Anne said, smiling and looking around. "I sure remember this place. We haven't been here for years."

"Yeah, I know," I said, gently letting her hand slip out of mine as she walked in a circle around the area, smiling and looking at everything.

She turned back to me. "Why did you bring me here, of all places?" she asked, smiling. "What's the occasion? Is it the anniversary of the day we met? Because if it is, I forgot, sorry."

I forced a laugh. "If this goes the way I'd like it to we'll have a new anniversary to celebrate," I said quietly.

"What? I'm sorry, I didn't catch that."

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, trying to steel and calm my nerves at the same time. _You can do this, man._

I reached my hand into my pocket and fished out what was inside. I turned to Anne and sank down onto one knee. I held out my hand so she could see the silver ring sitting in my palm. And I opened my mouth so she could hear what I had to ask.

"Anne Soleil, will you marry me?"

Her hand flew to her mouth and her blue eyes widened. For a few moments, she stood there looking absolutely thunderstruck. My heartbeat quickened, but I forced myself to hold still and wait for her response, her answer, her decision.

A few tears slid from her eyes and dripped down her face. Fearing the worst, I opened my mouth to apologize, but I never got that far.

"Leo, I would love to," she answered, wiping a tear from her cheek. "I'm sorry—I just never expected—"

"Don't apologize," I said gently, taking her hand and slipping the ring onto her finger. I got to my feet and immediately she pulled me into a hug, warmer than the breeze in the summer's night.

We pulled apart and I held out one hand to her. "May I have this dance?"

"There's no music," she said, smiling.

"Does it matter?"

"My Apollo blood would have to disagree," she grinned. "But this time I'll have to make an exception." And she took my hand.

I don't know how long we were there, stepping back and forth and around in a peaceful slow dance. I don't know if anyone missed us, or if anyone even noticed we weren't still at the bonfire. But what I did know was how happy I was feeling at that moment. With me in her arms and her in mine, the ring on her finger, and a smile on her face, I felt that nothing could be better.

For a moment I just looked at her, her, my one love. She met my eyes and smiled at me, and I thought about all the years that had gone by, leading up to now. I wondered what would be next, but if I had Anne with me, I figured I'd be happy. Here she was in the moonlight, smiling at me, dancing with me, and even now, six years later, she still looked every bit as beautiful and amazing as she did when she was fifteen.

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><p><strong>Quick AN: For those confused and/or for those who care, re-read chapter 23 of _The Fire and the Sun_, when Leo has his dream. Any of the dialogue sound familiar? ;)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay…I must have lost too much sleep (whether it's due to geometry homework or being unable to put down _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows _haha!) because I just realized that I totally forgot to do a disclaimer! *facepalm* so yeah here goes nothing: I don't own Heroes of Olympus or Carter or Charlie! I do own Anne Soleil though! :D :D :D**

**Also, I am SO SORRY that I haven't updated in so long! I've been so busy that I haven't had the time or the energy or the creative essence to do any writing. So today I just sat down and said I AM GOING TO FINISH A CHAPTER! and I did yayyy! So thank you guys SO MUCH for being patient! Love you all this one's for you! :D**

**And a special thanks to Percylover008 for helping me plan everything! Love ya girl thank you so much! :D**

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><p>Anne's POV<p>

"_Now_ can I open my eyes?" I asked.

"Not yet!"

"We're not finished!"

"You can't rush this! It's got to be _perfect_!"

"But we've been here for like half an hour," I protested. "Please?"

"NO!"

I would've rolled my eyes, but they were being covered by a particularly persistent Aphrodite girl, while the others worked on my hair. It was like a horror movie, I thought, cracking a grin. I can see it now: _Revenge of the Aphrodite Children_.

_That sure brings me back, _I thought, smiling and remembering how the Aphrodite girls had prepped me for my first official date with Leo. But this time it was for something much bigger.

I rubbed the place on my right ring finger where my engagement ring had been. I'd gotten used to wearing it; now it felt weird to not have it.

"In a few hours you'll have a nice new ring there, darling," said the voice of my friend Ashley; I could hear her footsteps coming into the room in the Big House where we were. I grinned. It was like she'd read my thoughts.

"Can I have my eyes back, please?" I asked the girl whose hands were clamped over my face. "I won't look in the mirror, promise."

An annoyed huff answered me as the hands were removed. I smiled up at Ashley, whose dark brown hair was curled just enough to make it slightly wavy. She wasn't in her bridesmaid's dress yet, but she looked comfortable in a thin hoodie and yoga pants. Her eyes were shining excitedly as she grinned at me.

"Nervous?" she asked.

"Beyond," I groaned.

"Think this'll help?" she asked, pulling with a flourish from behind her back my iPod and a chocolate brownie.

"I think so!" I laughed, taking them from her. "Thanks, Ash."

"Don't mention it," she smiled, giving my shoulder a quick squeeze. "I did us all a favor; we can't have the bride passing out from nerves."

I made a face at her and took a bite of the brownie.

An Aphrodite girl behind me shrieked, "You'll ruin your teeth! They'll be all covered with chocolate!"

"I've got time to brush my teeth beforehand," I said, waving her off. "I just _really_ need chocolate right now."

"Well said, girl," Ashley laughed.

"Have you seen Charlie?" I asked her, taking another bite. "I sent him to go see if my mom arrived yet about twenty minutes ago. I hope she gets here soon—"

"Where's my daughter?" a familiar voice bellowed from the hall.

"Never mind," I laughed to a startled-looking Ashley. I gently pulled my hair from the grasp of the Aphrodite crew and rushed to the door.

"Mom!"

"Anne!" she yelled, crushing me in a hug. "My gods, I just can't believe it…"

"What?" I managed to mumble, my face pressed up against her shoulder. "That I'm getting married? Mom, that is so cliché!"

She held me back at arm's length and laughed loudly. "No, I can't believe I'm actually going to see you in a dress!"

My indignant "_Mom_!" was drowned out by the Aphrodite girls behind me, who exploded into laughter.

"I can't wait to meet everybody, and to meet this Leo in person," Mom continued, sweeping around the room grinning crazily. "We've only ever spoke over Iris-messaging," she explained to a random Aphrodite girl. "when Anne told me she was engaged. I swear, I almost dropped the dish I was holding! Actually," she added, leaning back toward me and Ashley and speaking in an undertone, "I _did _drop the dish I was holding; it was that hideous one your Aunt Samantha gave me; I've always hated it. Just don't tell Sam!"

Ashley started laughing and extended her hand. "It's nice to meet you, Ms. Soleil. I'm Ashley, a friend of Anne's."

"Call me Maddie, please. And it's lovely to meet you!" Mom said, ignoring the hand and hugging Ashley instead.

That's my mom for you. She's always happy and cheerful; she can make anyone feel good. But she can also be very serious and patient, particularly when she's working with horses. As usual, her light brown hair was in a long braid, tossed over her shoulder, and her eyes, still blue but lighter than mine, were surveying the room happily. She was built like me; long-legged and thin, but I knew how strong she was from working with horses her whole life.

"How's Diamond, Mom?" I asked, thinking lovingly of my horse back home in Cali.

"He's wonderful, honey," Mom replied, smiling.

"Now, come back here, Anne!" one of the Aphrodite girls said to me, brandishing her hairbrush. "We hadn't finished."

"She's letting you do her hair?" Mom gasped, clapping her hand to her chest. "Who are you and what have you done to my daughter?" she teased, turning back to me.

I swatted at her. "Very funny."

She grinned and turned back towards the door. "Now, where is everybody else? I'm so behind, I need to meet everyone."

The Aphrodite girls glared at me like, _You'd better let us finish._ I decided not to argue.

"Ash, can you introduce her to everyone?" I asked. Ashley smiled.

"Sure," she said, turning and walking out of the room. Mom waved at me and smiled before following Ashley.

I sat back down and my hair crew got back to work. I desperately wanted to go outside and find somebody to scream all my excitement and nervousness to. Charlie maybe; he would surely tolerate me, his longtime girlfriend, Leo's half-sister Carter, sometimes suffered from anxiety and he had never failed to comfort her.

It made me smile. Carter and Charlie were the cutest couple I knew. _Maybe they'll be next, _I thought, looking at the bare place on my finger.

I checked the time on the wall clock. I had two hours left.

Two hours until I would be in my dress, standing up in front of everyone.

Two hours until I would be holding Leo's hand.

Two hours until I would have a ring on my finger.

Two hours until I would be walking away as a married woman.

I stuffed the rest of the brownie in my mouth.

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><p>I remember feeling the sand under my (secretly) bare feet, the sea breeze sifting gently through my hair, and Leo's warm hand closed around mine.<p>

"You may now kiss the bride." Hera's silky voice rang out over the gathered people.

Leo, looking amazing in a simple dark suit, his curly hair slightly tousled but still neat, turned to me and gently squeezed my hand, smiling warmly.

My eyes fluttered shut as Leo leaned in toward me. Our lips met and the people assembled around us cheered and clapped.

I don't think I'd ever felt happier, and I remembered thinking how it's weird that time seems to have that ability to slow down and speed up at will. One minute I was kissing Leo, holding his hands, feeling his fingers brushing against my ring, and it was all beginning to sink in for me.

The next minute was a whirl of excitement. People swirled around us as we walked back toward the crowd; Ashley, looking stunning in a hot pink dress, hugged me tightly; the two other bridesmaids, Carter, in a light blue dress, and Piper, in light violet, hugged both me and Leo; Jason, the best man, grinned heartily and clapped Leo on the back before hugging me; Percy and Annabeth strolled up to us, offering congratulations; my father Apollo barged up to me with a goblet of nectar and offered me a celebratory drink. I spotted Hephaestus hanging back at the edge of the crowd; Leo excused himself and slipped away to go talk to him, Carter at his heels. My half-brothers Will, Scott, Cameron, and Jesse swarmed me and gave their congratulations. Scott even gave me an extremely awkward one-armed hug before disappearing into the crowd.

As soon as they left, Mom launched herself onto me, grinning like a maniac and wrapping me tightly in a hug. "Oh my gods, Anne, I just can't believe it!" she practically shrieked, squeezing the life out of me.

"Ow—Mom—get off!" I gasped.

"Sorry!" she said, letting go of her extremely strong grip on me. "You look beautiful, honey, you really do."

"Thank you," I said, blushing and looking down at my dress. When I'd told the Aphrodite children I was planning to just wear whatever dress I could get, as I didn't want an extremely fancy wedding and I wouldn't be able to buy a really nice dress anyway, they'd almost passed out. They'd gone straight to their mom with the problem, and Aphrodite had risen to the occasion beautifully. I'd had to endure no time of long, never-ending dress shopping, as she'd known exactly what would work for me.

My dress was a sleeveless halter top with a heart-shaped neckline, white of course, but I'd decided to dress it up a little with a thin bright blue sash tied loosely around my waist, much to the disapproval of Aphrodite and of Hera ("It's not _traditional _wedding attire!"), who'd only agreed to marry us because Leo insisted she owed him for busting her out of her prison all those years ago. How convenient that she's the goddess of marriage as well.

I was shaken from my thoughts when music started to stream across the little stretch of beach where everyone was gathered. Apollo had conjured a stereo on the sand, and now the opening chords to Neon Trees' _Animal _were reaching my ears. I laughed; I didn't think that that song was very wedding-y, but it sure fit the excited atmosphere. All around me, I could see my friends laughing and talking excitedly as they danced and socialized.

I looked toward Leo, but he and Carter were still talking to Hephaestus, and I didn't want to interrupt. Then I felt a tap on my shoulder.

Charlie was standing behind me, looking nice in a dress shirt and pants. His brown hair was neatly brushed, and a smile was on his face.

"Congratulations," he said, offering me a hug.

"Thank you," I said, hugging him tightly. "Gonna ask Carter to dance?" I asked when we pulled apart. "I know you like this song."

His smile faded. "Yeah, I do, but…" he trailed off and examined his shoes.

"You're not having problems, are you?" I asked him.

"No, we're not. I just…well, I want to ask her something else," he said, so quietly I had to strain to hear him over the music and chatter of the crowd.

For a second, I was confused, but then it sank in. I could see all the symptoms on him now. He was obviously unsettled about something. He wasn't enjoying the music (which in itself is a crime). He "wanted to ask her something else"…

"Charlie," I said, my voice rising with excitement. "You're not—"

"Yeah," he said with a small smile, pulling something from his pocket and holding it up for me to see.

A ring box.

"No way," I exclaimed. "Oh my gods! Charlie!"

"Not so loud!" he said nervously, slipping the box back into his pocket.

"Sorry," I said in an undertone, grinning. "When are you—"

"As soon as I can get her alone," he said, eyeing Carter, who was smiling warmly up at her father, whom she was still talking to. Leo had gone, slipped into the crowd somewhere.

"Anything I can do to help?" I offered.

"No, you just enjoy the celebration," Charlie replied, smiling at me. "It is your day, after all…as a matter of fact, now I kind of feel bad about this; I'm taking away from yours and Leo's moment by doing this to—"

"No, you're not!" I said, forgetting to keep my voice down. "Don't say that, Charlie! This just makes the day better."

Charlie's blue eyes gazed nervously at me. "If all goes well, that is."

"You won't know until you try," I said, prodding him forward.

He turned and smiled at me. "You're right. Thanks, Anne."

I probably looked strange, standing there, staring across the sand at Charlie, who was walking toward Carter and Hephaestus. He spoke a few words to the god before leading Carter away, probably to somewhere a little more private. I watched them for a moment, walking along the sand together, the breeze lifting their hair and playing with the hem of Carter's blue dress.

"What're you looking at?" Leo's voice said close to my ear. Without turning around I gently leaned back against him before replying, "Carter and Charlie."

He grinned and fixed his beautiful brown eyes on the couple in the distance. "Mark my words, they'll be next," he said, indicating with a wave of his hand the scene around us.

I grinned. "How little you know."

"What?"

"Nothing."

He narrowed his eyes playfully. "Something."

I held his gaze, and for a minute we mock-stared each other down until Leo blinked.

"Dang it," he muttered, grinning good-naturedly.

I laughed, but my attention was suddenly caught by the sudden change in the music. Soft, flowing keyboard reached my ears, and the first lines of Rascal Flatts' _Won't Let Go _streamed across the sand from Apollo's stereo.

Leo offered a hand. "Care to dance?" he asked, his eyes sparkling as he smiled.

"Of course," I replied, taking his hand and letting him lead me to a clear spot of sand. "Just try not to step on my feet," I said with a laugh. "I'm not wearing shoes."

"You're not?" Leo laughed. "Only you, Anne."

"Hey, it was either that or the heels Aphrodite wanted me to wear!"

"I can understand that," Leo replied. "But hey, wait a second, were you implying that I'm a bad dancer?"

"Maybe," I said teasingly.

Leo grinned and clasped my hand. "Well, let me prove you wrong."

I smiled and let myself relax, swaying gently in time to the sweet music, letting the voice of Gary LeVox, Rascal Flatts' lead singer, lull me. And then Leo added his voice, singing the chorus:

"_I will stand by you_

_I will help you through_

_When you've done all you can do_

_If you can't cope…_

_I will dry your eyes_

_I will fight your fight_

_I will hold you tight_

_And I won't let go…_"

I looked up in slight surprise; I hadn't thought Leo knew this song. But when he stopped singing at the end to hold me a little closer, and when he whispered, "And I mean that," softly in my ear, I knew there were tears in my eyes.

Leo gently wiped them away with his sleeve.

"I will dry your eyes, remember?" he whispered, smiling at me, his dark brown eyes shining with happiness.

And in that single moment, it wouldn't matter if the world exploded right then and there. I would die in Leo's arms, and he in mine. And that, I thought as I laid my head on his shoulder, would be a pretty good way to go.


	4. Chapter 4

**I was listening to Mayday Parade's _I Swear This Time I Mean It _the entire time I was writing this, and it is a truly amazing song. Please check it out people. It almost makes me cry every time I hear it, hence the soppy emotion in this chapter ;)**

**Percylover008, stay strong girl! Hope you enjoy, this one's for you.**

**And special thank-yous to SatyrsUnite and Son of the Sea 100896! Can't thank you two enough for all your support! :D :D :D **

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><p><em>Four years later.<em>

Leo's POV

It was a wonder I didn't explode. Or implode. Whatever the word is, it's gotta be a miracle that didn't happen to me; so many emotions were racing through me.

Adrenaline had hold of me like a thick, smothering glove, making my heartbeat and my breathing faster. Sickly fear hung like a swamp or something gross in my throat and the pit of my stomach. But something else was there too: a tiny flickering light, like a fairy or something, darted around me comfortingly, reminding me that there's still light despite the bleak darkness of the room I was sitting in.

My heartbeat seemed to echo off the blank walls. I turned my head to see out the one window, a crescent moon hung high in the sky and a crisp late November wind was rustling the branches of a tree outside.

I blew out a nervous breath and drummed my fingers on my knee. Hopefully it would all be over soon, I wouldn't be able to take sitting here much longer. But I wouldn't be able to take seeing her pain, either. I hoped she would forgive me for not being there, for not holding her hand…

"Mr. Valdez?"

My head snapped around toward the door. A short, plump woman was craning her neck around the door.

"Yeah?" I asked, trying to stuff down the nervous quaver in my voice.

She nodded and smiled. "Come with me."

I stuffed my hands into my jeans pockets so she wouldn't see how badly my hands were shaking and followed, leaving the little dark room and walking after the woman down what seemed to be an endless hall.

After passing what seemed like a million doors, the short woman stopped at one and opened it quietly. I tried not to knock her over as I practically leaped in; my heart rate had reached an all-time high, fear clutched at my chest as I turned my head, looking for her…

There.

"Don't wake her," the woman's soft voice advised me as I approached. "She's unconscious, but she'll be okay. Just let her rest. She's exhausted, poor dear."

Anne was lying in the hospital room's only bed, her wavy blonde hair messed up, traces of sweat on her face, her blue eyes closed. Her breathing was steady and even, so unlike mine at the moment.

"Well done, sweetheart," I whispered, my voice catching in my throat as I carefully took her hand, which was lying on the blanket, and rubbed my thumb across it gently. "You were so brave."

Anne stirred a little but didn't wake up. I smiled at her, all my worry gone, evaporated by the sight of her.

"Mr. Valdez?" the nurse said behind me.

"Hm?" I replied without taking my eyes off Anne.

"Meet your son," came the soft words.

A bolt of lightning seemed to pierce me. I turned around quickly without letting go of Anne's hand.

The nurse smiled and held out the bundle of blankets in her arms. I gently laid Anne's hand back on the blanket and reached forward.

"Congratulations," the nurse said, a smile stretching across her plump face. "He's beautiful."

I gazed down at the little sleeping face, and I remember thinking that _beautiful _was an understatement. This was my kid. This was my baby son. Mine and Anne's.

"Thank you," I murmured to the nurse, who beamed at me.

"I'll let you three have your moment," she said, walking toward the door. "If she wakes up and needs anything, just press the button next to the bed, okay?"

"Okay," I murmured as the door closed behind her. For a while I just stood there and gazed down at my son's face. His skin color was similar to mine, and his soft hair was dark brown, also like mine. I smiled. Maybe he would have Anne's blue eyes. I'd always loved her blue eyes.

I located a chair next to the window and sank down into it, cradling the baby in my arms and gazing out at the moon, sending my thanks to every god I could think of, even the ones I didn't like, smiling like crazy and probably looking weird, but in no way did I care.

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><p>Anne's POV<p>

Pain…bright lights…my hair plastered to my face…

_Please turn the light off. Just please let me sleep._

Can't get my breath…

Where's Leo?

_Leo? Are you there?_

"He's not here, sweetheart, I'm sorry."

_Leo? Please tell me you're here. I'm scared._

More pain…the prick of a needle in my arm…

"Well done, honey. It's over."

Darkness tugging at me, tempting me...

Don't fight it. Just let go…

_Okay…_

_I'm falling, aren't I? But I don't feel it…_

_I'm not dead, am I?_

_I must be…I can't feel the pain anymore._

It doesn't matter. Just relax.

_All right…_

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><p><em>He's beautiful, looks like Leo…<em>

_His eyes are blue, but I bet they'll change…_

_He's one, learning to walk…whoops! That's all right, sweetie, you're okay, just a little fall…He's not even crying. He's a tough one. _

_He's three, trying to play with Leo's tool belt…no! No, darling, that's Dad's …good thing you haven't managed to hurt yourself! Thank the gods!_

_He's ten, got his first bow…beautiful shot…he has got Apollo blood after all…_

_He's twelve…no! Not him, not so soon…we thought he'd be safe! I guess we thought wrong, this isn't good…_

_Flashes of razor-sharp fangs, a girl's scream…Carter's? It sounds like her, but I don't think it is…shouting, suddenly screaming his name. _

_Blood…_his _blood!_

_NO!_

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><p>My scream jerked me awake. It was dark, thank goodness; my head hurt. I could feel sweat on my face and my arms were shaking, reaching forward at nothing, trying to help before it was too late…<p>

"Anne," said a voice to my left, a familiar voice, so gentle, so welcome. "Anne, sweetie, it's okay. It must've just been a nightmare."

"Leo?"

"It's me," he said. My blurry vision adjusted; he was sitting in a chair by a window, visible in the feeble moonlight that came through the window, a bundle of blankets cradled in his arm. "Glad you're awake."

"Oh gods, it was awful, Leo, I saw him, and he was bleeding…" my voice trailed off; I didn't have the energy to say any more.

"Anne, it's okay," Leo repeated. I could see his shadowy figure getting up, still cradling the blankets in one arm, and laying his free hand on my shoulder. "You were dreaming."

"It didn't feel like just a dream!" I croaked, swiping my hair off my damp face. "I was there— they were screaming his name, and I thought—" I paused and swallowed weakly. "I thought he was about to die."

"Everything's okay," Leo said calmly. "You're fine, I'm fine, and the little guy's fine too," he said, glancing fondly down at the bundle in the crook of his arm.

I immediately stretched out my arms. I had to know for myself. "Let me see him."

I could see Leo's warm smile through the darkness of the room as he gently handed me the swath of soft blankets.

My heart melted as I gazed down at the tiny sweet face. Oh my gods, he was beautiful, absolutely gorgeous, and my dream was right: he _did _look like Leo, dark hair and brown skin, though neither quite as dark as his father's. He stirred a little in his sleep and yawned. Smiling so wide I feared my face might split, I tucked the blankets a little tighter around him, my heart bursting with emotion.

"You said in your dream that _they_, whoever they are, were calling his name," I heard Leo murmur. "What was his name? I mean, what _is_ his name?"

I closed my eyes for a moment and rocked my son in my arms thoughtfully, while testing the name in my mind. And then I realized why it was so special. Why it was _his _name.

"Axl," I murmured down to the bundle in my arms. "That's your name. Axl Valdez."

"Interesting," Leo mused. "Axl. I like that. How'd you think of it?"

"I didn't," I laughed. "It's just _his _name. The A for my name, the L for yours, and the X for our song, _Dear X_. Don't you remember, that amazing song we listened to on our first date? Isn't it perfect?"

"Oh my gods, you're right," Leo exclaimed quietly. "That's really neat! That's a great name; I love it."

"Perfect," I murmured to the baby in my arms. "Welcome to the world, Axl Valdez."

As if he recognized his name, Axl yawned again and blinked open his eyes. I drew in a breath; his eyes were the same dark blue color as mine.

"Now, where else have I seen eyes that color?" Leo teased, kissing my cheek before gently rubbing his thumb across Axl's forehead. I smiled, but I was too choked up to speak. Axl was gazing calmly up at me with those blue eyes, Leo was right beside me like he promised he would always be, and even though I was tired and definitely looking the worse for wear, I knew my heart was nearly bursting with happiness.

A few tears fell from my eyes and landed one by one on the blankets. I almost felt silly, but Leo kissed my cheek again and I knew he understood, because when I looked at him, even in the darkness I could see a few tears shining in his dark brown eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>So, everybody meet the main character for the rest of <em>The New Spark<em>! Yayy! *holds Axl in the air and sings _Circle of Life_***

**Anne: OMG PUT HIM DOWN!**

**Diamondsgirl: FINE. *huff* But you should be THANKING me. I am going to make him a STAR.**

**Leo: Just please don't go holding him over cliffs! **

**Diamondsgirl. FINE! But hopefully he's not as temperamental as his parents.**

**Leo: *exchanges glance w Anne* Temperamental? Us?**

**Diamondsgirl: UM, the demanding bonuses and the constant complaining if I use one itty-bitty taser on you! That!**

**Anne: You mean when we were working on the first story? ALL those years ago?**

**Diamondsgirl: Years for you, a few weeks for me. **

**Leo and Anne: *exchange confused glance***

**Leo: idk what you're talking about, but I am mature now. *pops collar* I have reformed.**

**Anne and Diamondsgirl: *exchange skeptical glance***

**Leo: I HAVE!**

**Diamondsgirl: IF you say so…anyway, please review people and tell me what you think of the chapter and the new main character! And before you ask, Axl is actually a legit name, so yeah! Love you all! :D**


	5. Chapter 5

**First off I'd like to say I'm sorry that I haven't been updating as much as I should. I'm working on about ten different projects right now and am trying to get volunteer hours and am trying to get back in shape for volleyball season and it's crazy! So thank you all for being so patient; this isn't one of my best chapters but I hope you guys like it :D**

**I own Anne and Axl and Soter, SatyrsUnite owns Jake and Rue, and Rick Riordan owns everything else! Enjoy!**

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><p>Axl's POV<p>

I first began to realize I was not normal when I was twelve. Which, really, should have been a shock for me, but I'd never considered myself perfectly _normal _in the first place. I was actually kind of relieved, like _hey, there are kids who are just as messed up as me!_ But that was when I didn't fully understand what or who I was. I was weird beyond weird. At least, beyond this particular branch of weird…

I'm probably not making sense. I should probably start from the beginning. For starters, I'd grown up in a relatively quiet neighborhood (well, quiet for New York anyway), in a little house surrounded by basically nothing except farmland. It often was cold in the winter, and the roof leaked in the kitchen whenever it rained, and there wasn't civilization for miles, but I loved the place. I loved running through the high grass in our never-ending backyard, practicing archery with a bow my mom had given me for my tenth birthday, or fiddling around with metal and tools that my dad would let me borrow.

But I admit I was lonely.

At least I wasn't completely alone. I had my parents, which is more than some kids in stories like mine could say. Mom would listen whenever I needed to talk, and she would always manage somehow to make me feel better. Dad was always there when I needed a dose of fun, whether it be ideas for something interesting to build or whatever. But I didn't really have friends, unless you counted my black Labrador dog, Soter. Mom and Dad had gotten him as a puppy around my sixth birthday. He's fit and strong, loves running with me and stealing my hammers and wrenches when I'm not looking, and is pretty much my best friend.

Scratch that, actually—my only friend.

But I wasn't particularly bothered by that most of the time. I went to a tiny school nearby, and my marks weren't bad. I had trouble with reading and writing though, and I hated sitting still. I only had mild forms of dyslexia and ADHD, which my parents thought was strange, because as they both had dyslexia and ADHD, it was odd that I didn't have it as badly as they did. But it didn't really bother me. My life wasn't bad, it was just a little monotonous, and a little too safe, like I was constantly being watched or guarded. But at the time I thought that was silly. I trusted my parents, and I'd never seen much reason to keep me safe. So I really didn't give it much thought until my mom's half-brother nearly broke down our door.

The day hadn't really been anything exciting, unless you count being woken up by an overexcited Labrador jumping on your chest. Once I'd managed to shove Soter off my bed and get up, I went about getting ready for school through a sleepy haze. I sat down to breakfast, fiddling with a few rubber bands I'd found in my jeans pocket and yawning.

"Morning, buddy," Dad greeted me, grinning at me from across the table.

"Morning," I yawned in response.

"Do you want some toast, Axl?" Mom asked, turning around from the stove.

"Hm? Oh, yeah, sure," I said. "Thanks."

Mom smiled and put some bread in the toaster, brushing her long blonde ponytail off her shoulder as she did so.

"Got anything interesting going on in school?" Dad asked, fixing his brown eyes on me. My eyes resembled my mom's: dark blue, but my hair and skin color was nearly identical to Dad's. Both of my parents were thin but strong, and I was no different.

"Uh, not really," I said. "Just, you know. School."

Dad grinned and sipped his cup of coffee. "Just be thankful you go to a nice school. My time at the Wilderness School when I was fifteen was _not _fun, and that's putting it mildly."

"But you had friends there," I mumbled. "I don't have anyone, really."

I was telling the truth. I went to a regular school. I would almost go willingly to the Wilderness School if it meant that there would be kids there who were like me.

Soter whined and put his head in my lap. I rubbed his head.

"Axl, listen to me," Dad said, meeting my eyes. "There's no reason why you shouldn't have friends. You just don't make much of an effort. You like to sit to the side and fiddle with pipe cleaners and wires and stuff—and that's something you got from me, sorry about that," he added with a wide grin.

I forced a smile. I'd heard it all before, but there was no point saying so.

"Here, hon," Mom said, putting a plate of toast in front of me and kissing the top of my head.

"Thanks," I said, swatting at Soter's nose, which had been inching steadily closer to my plate.

I ate my toast in silence. Dad started staring at some fixed point the way he did when he was thinking about something new to build. Mom finished at the stove and sat down next to me, sipping a cup of coffee and smiling when she saw Dad's expression.

I finished breakfast and grabbed my backpack. I patted Soter's head like I always did before I left and was about to call to my parents that I was leaving now. But then I heard it: running footsteps outside the front door, and then a furious pounding on the door itself accompanied by panting and a voice yelling, "Let me in!"

I jumped back in surprise and Soter started to bark and growl. Mom and Dad came running in; Dad grasped Soter by the collar and Mom approached the door. "Jake? Is that you?" she asked, sounding bewildered.

"Yes, dang it, now let me in before I break down the door!" the voice yelled.

"Charming as ever," I heard Dad chuckle to himself. Mom opened the door and a man I'd never seen before practically fell inside. He was tall and strong-looking, with black hair and blue eyes. His clothes were ripped and covered with burn marks, and strangely, he was carrying a bow and a nearly-empty quiver slung over his shoulder.

"What brings you here, Jake?" Mom asked, closing the door and clenching her hands like she did when she was nervous. "You can't just be visiting, after you tried to break in."

Dad let Soter loose and straightened up. My dog approached the newcomer and gave him a businesslike sniff before coming back to sit next to me. I didn't really know what to do except keep standing there holding my backpack and thinking that I was probably going to be late for school.

"No, I'm not just visiting," Jake said to Mom. "Although not to sound like I don't care for my sister, quite the contrary actually, I'm here to warn you."

_Sister? _I thought, eying the man standing next to my mom. "Mom has a brother?" I asked Dad out of the corner of my mouth.

"Half-brother actually," Dad corrected. "She's got plenty of half-siblings, and so do I."

I wanted to ask why this had never been mentioned before, but I held my tongue and focused on the conversation.

"There's a _huge _group of monsters headed this way," Jake was saying, glancing to the window and back to Mom's face. "I have no idea why, and Rue and her squad can't hold them off for long. We think they might be going for camp, and that means they're coming straight for you as well. You guys need to get out of here now."

The smile melted off Dad's face and Mom cursed in some other language. I was just thinking that this day was getting weirder and weirder.

"Um, what's going on?" I ventured. "Can somebody explain, please?"

"No time," Dad replied tersely. "Just go with Jake, _now._ We'll be there in a while, don't worry."

"Where is this _there_?" I tried to ask, but before I knew it Jake had me by the arm and was pulling me gently but very firmly through the door. My backpack just lay forgotten on the floor; not that I was _complaining _or anything, I mean sure, I was scared, but anything had to be better than school, right?

I tried to keep up with Jake as we left the house. Soter immediately bolted through the door before Jake could close it on him, ramming into my legs.

"Ow!" I protested.

"Keep quiet," Jake hissed. "Is this your dog?"

"Yeah," I said, gripping Soter's collar and trying to push him back inside. He barked a few times, like, _Hey, man, I'm supposed to come with you! _and wiggled out of my grip.

"Bud, what's wrong with you?" I asked him, trying in vain to shove him back through the door. "I'm not leaving forever!"

Jake eyed me like maybe I'd spoken too soon, which didn't make my nerves any better. I did my best to ignore it and focus on the crazy dog I was dealing with.

Soter yanked himself from me and sprinted away from the house. He skidded to a halt a few feet away and barked again in that low urgent tone, fixing his golden eyes on me.

"Wait," Jake said quietly, casting another swift glance at the road leading away from home before approaching my dog, with one hand held out, palm up. "Who are you?"

Soter wagged his tail and trotted up to Jake, lifting his paw to place it in Jake's hand.

Jake gently pulled his hand away. "That's not what I meant, but…oh, I see now." He tilted his head to the sky. "Typical of Anne, with her fondness for animals. All right," he said down to Soter. "You can come with us."

Soter barked excitedly and wagged his tail before turning on the spot and starting to run up the road.

I was _totally_ confused. I had to ask. "Jake, what—"

"I'll explain!" Jake practically shouted, prodding me forward and starting to run after Soter. "Right now we need to get the _heck _out of here."

I didn't argue. Jake was a fast runner, and I had to really focus on keeping up with him as we sprinted up the quiet country road. Soter kept bolting ahead and then realizing he was going too fast for us and circling back only to do the whole thing over again about two seconds later.

I wanted to ask all the questions that were knocking insistently on the inside of my skull, but I didn't think I could form the words while I was trying to breathe. "Jake—can we—slow down— please?" I panted.

"No," Jake replied tersely, barely panting himself. "I'm sorry, but we really need to get out of here. Don't worry, camp's not far, just over the hill there; you see that pine tree?"

I nodded.

"That's the boundary line. We're almost there, just hang on."

My legs were starting to ache, but I kept going. And then I heard it: a loud, savage roar that nearly made my heart leap clean out of my chest. I skidded to a stop and whipped around.

My jaw almost hit the gravel. Lumbering up the road was a giant. And I do mean a giant. It was tall and hairy, with ripped arms covered in random tattoos and a _huge _club in its hand. Holy cow.

Jake cursed and shoved me forward. "Keep moving!" he shouted. "I'm going back to help them."

"No!" I yelled. That thing was approaching my house. My parents were in there. "I'm helping you!" My voice shook with fear. I really didn't want to go any closer to that giant, but no way was I letting it hurt my parents.

Soter's jaws clamped on the bottom of my T-shirt, tugging me forward. I tried to pull my shirt away, but Soter didn't let go.

"Don't be stupid; listen to him!" Jake snapped. "He'll take you to camp; I'm staying behind. Just run and whatever you do, do _not _follow me! Now, GO!"

The giant roared again and broke into a sort of lumbering jog in the direction of the house. Jake took off at a sprint back the way we'd came. Soter growled urgently and tugged again on my shirt.

I didn't argue. I just took off at full tilt toward the hill and the pine tree. Soter ran at my side, his black ears flying back in the wind. My breath was coming in ragged gasps, but I didn't dare stop. That giant, whatever it was, was seriously scary. I wanted to put as much distance between us as I could, but I also hated to sound so cowardly.

Soter reached the bottom of the hill and bolted his way to the top, barking loudly like was announcing our arrival. I followed, breathing hard and clutching a stitch in my side.

And then I saw the dragon.

"Holy—!" I yelped as the thing lifted its head, smoke curling from its nostrils. It was wrapped around the pine tree, lying underneath a shiny golden rug of some sort that was hanging in the branches, but I didn't really take the time to examine it.

Soter approached the dragon, his tail down submissively. I wanted to yell at him to get away from there, but my mouth had gone dry with fear. I could only watch as my dog barked softly a few times and touched noses with the dragon. I couldn't believe my eyes as the dragon just lowered its head and went to sleep.

Soter turned around and in that moment, I could swear my dog winked at me before he trotted over the crest of the hill and down toward the little valley below.

I followed, shaking my head and trying to comprehend all that I'd just seen. Today certainly hit the #1 spot in the Top Ten Weirdest Days of All Time list. No doubt in my mind.


	6. Chapter 6

**I am SO not happy with this chapter, let me say that straight off. I am totally slacking off and am losing my motivation to complete the story. For now I'll keep trying, but im going to b honest: I can feel the quality of writing decreasing :( Sorry to start off a new chapter so negatively but I think you guys should hear it straight.**

**On to a happier note! :D I only own Anne and Axl! Special thanks to Percylover008 for creating Anya, and to SatyrsUnite for Ashton! I don't own either character!**

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><p>Axl's POV<p>

My whole life, I'd believed I was growing up so far away from everything. I figured it was because of my parents; Mom had spent her childhood on her mom's quiet horse ranch in California, and Dad had run away from six foster homes and lived all by his lonesome for periods of time. I always assumed they preferred to be separated from the thick of New York and chose to live in this quiet, more rural neighborhood instead.

But now, standing on top of the hill with the huge pine tree, gazing down at the valley below me, I was beginning to think that this was no coincidence I was here.

Soter turned around from a little ways down the hill and barked like, _Hey, aren't you coming? _

Hesitantly, I followed him, glancing all around me, trying to figure out what I was dealing with. Each thing my eyes focused on was more captivating than the next. I mean, seriously, was that _real_ lava on the climbing wall?

As I approached the thick of this unusual place, I quickly found out I wasn't alone. A lot of people, both older and younger than me, were busy at the many different areas of the (what had Jake called it?) _camp_. I could even see a few creatures that looked like they had the hind legs of goats, and—I shook my head and blinked to make sure I wasn't hallucinating—was that a _centaur_?

Soter stopped suddenly and I almost tripped over him. He barked a few times like he was announcing our arrival, and I started to feel like a rabbit that wandered into a coyote den as heads began to turn. I heard someone call, "Go get Chiron," which made no sense to me, but I hoped this Chiron would have some answers for me.

In the meantime, I tried to smile and not look like I was freaking out as a girl bounced up to me, a wide grin on her face. She was a little shorter than me, with curly black hair that had a few brown streaks in it. Her blue eyes were bright and excited.

"Hi, are you new? Well, you must be; I've never seen you before! But then again, I'm pretty new here too," she said, smiling at me and offering her hand. "I'm Anya, by the way, Anya Patel. But you can call me An," she continued, pronouncing it like "on". "What's your name? And who's this?" She offered her other hand for Soter to sniff and smiled as he licked it and wagged his tail.

"Um, that's Soter, my dog, and I'm Axl Valdez," I managed, shaking her hand and trying to look semi-cool. But it was kind of hard. I was tired from running and still confused from all the weird events of the day. I just wanted to figure out what was going on.

"Hey, An, you just abandoned our game," a guy complained, walking up behind the girl and trying to twirl a volleyball on one finger. "It was your idea to play, remember?"

Then he saw me and immediately developed an interested expression. "Hey, new kid? Nice to meet ya, I'm Ashton Wilder," he said, grinning at me in a friendly way and offering his hand. His blue gaze left my face and he looked over my shoulder.

"Hey, where's my parents?" he asked. "They said something about getting Leo and Anne back to camp, but—"

He was sounding confused, so I interrupted. "Leo and Anne are my parents," I told him. "Someone came and told us we had to leave, and he sent me on ahead…"

"Who?" Ashton said, sounding a little nervous.

"His name was Jake," I said, and Ashton exhaled.

"Okay. That's my dad. So hopefully everyone else will be on their way too."

"Oh, you're Leo and Anne's son?" Anya asked curiously. "Mom and Dad have told me about them. They're good friends, but I've never met them or you."

From her expression, she was probably about to ask why that was. I was about to protest that I didn't know, but then someone came up to us. It was the centaur I'd seen earlier. From the waist up, he looked like a normal guy, with brown hair and a beard and a gray T-shirt with a horseshoe print on it. But from the waist down, he was a white horse.

I couldn't help taking a step back as he approached. Soter looked up and wagged his tail, and the centaur smiled.

"Welcome," he said to me. "I am Chiron. And who would you be?"

I wasn't sure what to say. It seemed that people here knew of my parents, but I didn't want to sound like I already knew everything about this place, because I sure didn't.

"Um, I'm Axl Valdez," I said nervously. "It's nice to meet you."

"The same to you, child. Would you be the son of Anne and Leo Valdez?" Chiron asked, scrutinizing me with his brown eyes. I tried to meet his intense gaze. It looked like his eyes could see right through you.

"Yeah, I am. Um, today, a man named Jake came to our house and got us out. He said there were monsters, and that there was someone named Rue fighting them but she couldn't keep them away for long, and he told me to run on ahead. I don't know where he or my parents are, really," I explained, my voice shaking just a little. I inwardly cursed myself. _Get a grip, man!_

Chiron turned his head toward the hill Soter and I had entered the camp over. "Annabeth," he said, and a blonde woman stepped out of the crowd. She had stormy gray eyes and an expression that warned me she was not to be crossed.

"Collect a small patrol and go assist Jake and Rue," Chiron said. "Make sure everyone gets back here safely. I am sure we will have much to talk about."

"Another one?" Annabeth said, nodding toward me.

"Yes," Chiron replied, and Annabeth gave me a brief smile before rounding up some people and heading off back toward the huge pine tree.

"Well, Axl," Chiron said, smiling at me. "Why don't you and your friend here—" he motioned to Soter— "come with me to the Big House. Anya, Ashton, you may go back to your activities." He smiled at the two standing next to me, the only people left; the rest of the crowd had dispersed.

"We should hang out sometime," Anya said to me, smiling.

Ashton nodded agreement and grinned at me. "Yeah, man. Come find us when you're finished."

"Really?" I asked, a little surprised. "Thanks, that'd be great!"

They smiled at me and started to walk away. I turned back to Chiron. His eyes swept from my face down to my shoes before he met my eyes again.

"Do you know why you are here, child?" he asked.

I looked up, a little startled. "Um, I know we had to go away, but I don't know why I had to come here," I managed, confusion still churning inside me. "What is this place?"

Chiron frowned. "You do not know? Leo and Anne have told you nothing?"

I had no idea what he meant. I shook my head slowly.

The centaur just stared at me for a long moment. "Very unlike them…I would have thought…" He trailed off into silence. Soter nudged my hand with his cold nose and made me jump. I had no idea what to say, and Chiron wasn't filling the silence.

"Well," he said at last, turning and striding off in the direction of a huge blue house I hadn't noticed before. "Come with me, child. We have _much_ to talk about."


	7. Chapter 7

Axl's POV

Soter and I followed Chiron to the porch of the Big House. A wheelchair was standing on the wood boards, and I wondered vaguely whose it was before Chiron gave me a reassuring smile and stepped backwards into it with his hind legs, easing himself into it. I watched as the white horse's body vanished inside the wheelchair whose depths I couldn't guess at, until Chiron looked nothing more than an ordinary wheelchair-bound man.

"That's a little better," he said, smiling. "Now I can accompany you inside the house."

I tried not to look freaked out as I followed him through the doors. Well, this certainly wasn't the weirdest thing I'd seen all day.

Chiron rolled into a large room with a long table in it. He pulled himself up to the table and drummed his fingers on it absentmindedly. I hung back in the doorway, unsure if he wanted me to sit or not, but Soter made himself right at home, flopping down at Chiron's feet.

"Come sit, child," Chiron said, still gazing off into space.

I slid awkwardly into the seat across the table from him and just sat there uncomfortable while Chiron thought, staring fixatedly at a point on the table and taking long breaths through his nose.

Soter started chewing on his paw, and I nudged him with my foot to make him stop, glad for something to do instead of just sit there like an idiot.

The movement seemed to get Chiron's attention. He sat up a little straighter and fixed his eyes on me. I tried to smile at him, but I'm sure it looked like a weird grimace or something. I was getting more and more unnerved by the minute.

"You know nothing?" he asked me quietly.

"Ah…I wouldn't say _nothing_…" I said in an attempt to make a joke. "I know my name and I know…uh…arithmetic and American history…and…um…as of today I know that my mom has a half-brother and that giants exist…well, unless that was an escaped Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade float or something that was approaching my house with a club!" I gave a forced laugh, but it died when Chiron's eyes met mine.

"This is not to be taken lightly, child," he said softly. "I mean that you do not know who I am? What this camp is? Who your parents truly are? Who this dog is? Who _you_ are?"

My attempt to lighten up the situation crumbled at once. "Ah…yeah…I don't…I don't know, sir."

"Call me Chiron," he replied calmly. He tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling for a few long moments before fixing his intense gaze back on me. "I wonder if it would be better to wait for Jake and Rue to return with your parents before we go into depth with the conversation I am sure we will need to have."

I didn't know; I just kept silent and rubbed Soter's back with my foot under the table.

"But, first I have a question: have your parents ever told you any Greek stories?"

"You mean myths?" I asked, confused.

Chiron winced. "I do not think that the old stories should be referred to as myths, but yes, that is what I mean."

"Um, no," I said, wondering what this had to do with anything. Maybe Chiron was just trying to make conversation.

"Worrying," he murmured. "You are behind."

"On what?" I asked.

"Training," he replied simply.

"For what?"

Before he could explain, I heard a door fly open back in the main room. Footsteps thundered inside.

"Chiron?" yelled a voice I recognized as Jake's.

"We are in here," Chiron called back.

I turned to face the door as it burst open and my mom rushed in, her face bloodless and her clothes ripped. As soon as she saw me at the table she launched herself at me and crushed me in a hug.

"Axl!" she cried into my ear. "Oh my gods, honey, you're all right!"

"Jeez, Anne, give him some breathing room," I heard Jake say as he entered the room. I didn't care though; I just threw my arms around Mom and hugged her back, so thankful that she was okay.

Soter hopped to his feet and poked Mom's leg with his nose. She let me go and turned to him. Then, as I watched in bewilderment, she stroked his ears and whispered, "You did well. Thank you."

He licked her fingers and wagged happily as Mom smiled at him and sat down at the table next to me, taking my arm gently in her hand like she was afraid to let go of me.

"Where are Leo and Rue?" Chiron asked Jake, who was leaning against the doorframe like he was comfortable not sitting at the table with the rest of us. "Surely you brought them back to camp?"

"Of course," Jake said indignantly. "But the rest of the Apollo cabin are tending to them; Rue's gotten a few bad sword cuts from a _dracaena_, and Leo's hurt his leg; a Laistrygonian giant knocked down a wall and he didn't quite get out of the way in time."

My heart leapt. "But—he'll…he'll be okay, won't he?"

Jake shrugged. "I would know if I was there, but I felt as though I was obligated to make my report to you first," he said to Chiron, sounding reproachful.

I stood up. "I'm going—" I started to say before Mom's hand tightened around my wrist.

"Axl, stay here, it's not—"

"I'm going to see him!" I insisted, trying to pull my arm free. "What if he's—"

"Honey, if it was very bad we would have called you outside. We have very good healers; they'll take care of him for now," Mom said calmly, meeting my eyes with her dark blue gaze. "I promise."

"I'll go outside and let you know if anything changes," Jake offered. "I want to stay with Rue anyway."

I stayed standing, torn. I still wanted to run from the room and find Dad, but something told me that I'd better stay. Reluctantly, I sank into my seat. Chiron smiled at me from across the table and Jake nodded to us and left the room.

"Well," Chiron said, looking over at Mom. "You have told him nothing." It wasn't a question; it was a sure-sounding statement.

Mom compressed her lips and looked down at the table almost sheepishly, still holding onto my wrist. "I don't deny it," she murmured.

Chiron smiled warmly. "It surprised me that you decided not to live here, to be honest. I doubted that either of you would wish to leave camp."

Mom shrugged. "I suppose we wanted Axl to have a taste of the mortal world. And…" she shifted in her seat, looking uncomfortable, not meeting my eyes. "…well, with him being…what he is, we didn't know if…if…"

"If he would be noticed. If he would be safe or in danger," Chiron finished for her.

"Yes."

My mind reeled. The mortal world? Me being what I am? Exactly what did that mean?

"Um…" I began hesitantly, and their eyes turned to me. "Can I, uh, get an explanation here, please?"

Mom and Chiron exchanged a glance. It was almost like they were both asking the other who would start. Finally Mom opened her mouth.

"Well," she said, tugging at her long blond ponytail with her free hand, something I knew she did when she was nervous. "I guess there's no real easy way to say this…but, your father and I are children of the Greek gods."


	8. Chapter 8

**Finally another chapter up! I am sooo sorry for any impatient people who are beginning to get annoyed with me, but in my defense I just got back from a trip and I thought I'd be able to bring my laptop, but apparently I couldn't and I was VERY mad because I had planned to knock out another chapter!**

**Enjoy :)**

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><p>Axl's POV<p>

I pretty much only had one question in response to this: what exactly _are _you supposed to say when your own mother, a person you thought was sane for your entire life, suddenly announces that she and your father are children of the Greek gods? My possible answers ranged from "Oh, okay…" to "You stay here and I'll go call 911" to "Why the heck haven't I gotten to know about this?"

In the end I settled on a simple awkward silence.

Mom winced at my expression. "I'm sorry, honey, I know how crazy that sounds. I didn't believe it either when I first found out."

To say I was confused would be an understatement. "So…uh, what does this mean, exactly?"

Chiron opened his mouth, but Mom silenced him with a gentle wave of her hand. "He can hear all the details later, Chiron," she said. "I'll just give him the simple version now if you don't mind."

Chiron inclined his head respectfully, and Mom continued. "Basically what it comes down to is that the Greek gods are alive and well in America, which is the heart of Western civilization or something of that nature. And they, ah, basically have lived here a long time, plenty of time to…familiarize themselves with mortals…"

"Wait!" I exclaimed, a horrifying thought suddenly having occurred to me. "Aren't all the gods related? Does that mean you and Dad are cousins or something!"

"No, no, no!" Mom yelped, a distinct redness spreading across her cheeks. "Not at all! See, the thing is, gods don't have proper DNA like humans. So, that means it's not uncommon for two demigods—"

"What?"

"People who are half-god and half-mortal," Mom explained. "Me, for example. My father is Apollo, the god of the sun. And my mother was the mortal; you've met her when you were little, I don't think you remember."

"And Dad…"

"His father is Hephaestus, the god of fire and metalworking," Mom told me, a small note of pride in her voice. "And his mother…well, she was mortal, but she died when he was very young."

I looked down at the tabletop. My father had mentioned his mother once to me, but since I'd never met her I'd assumed that there was some shady family thing going on, like maybe she and my father had fallen out or something. Something kind of exciting like that. But the truth was more tragic.

"But you," Chiron said, entering the conversation, "are unique. You have the blood of two gods, Apollo and Hephaestus, in your veins, as well as the blood of the two mortal women they once took a fancy to."

"So, in a way, you're a demigod as well," Mom mused, furrowing her brow. "Your blood is half-god, half-mortal, but you have the blood of two different gods and two different mortals."

"It is an odd concept," Chiron interjected softly. "But not completely uncommon." He studied me with those all-seeing eyes and I managed to hold his gaze. "Is he more like one god than the other?" he said, asking Mom but still looking at me. "Does he have a certain skill, or talent, or interest?"

Mom shrugged noncommittally and fiddled with the edge of the burnt and ripped piece of cloth that had been one of her favorite T-shirts a few hours ago.

"Did you perhaps keep him from certain activities in hopes that these parts of him would remain dormant?"

Mom jumped as though stung. "No! No, I mean, we never did anything like that. We…ah…did consider it, but Leo was keen on letting him explore." She smiled. "I think he just wanted to teach him what he knew." She sent a loving glance in my direction before turning back to Chiron. "We gave Axl a bow for his tenth birthday and he is very good at that, he enjoys working with metal and tools like any Hephaestus child…"

"What about the more artistic qualities of Apollo?" Chiron asked. "Does he enjoy music? Can he sing w—oh, I'm sorry," he added, turning to me. "I really should be asking you these questions, my apologies."

"It's okay," I said hesitantly. "And, uh, what were those questions again?"

"Apollo is also the god of poetry, music, and healing," Chiron said patiently. "Do you enjoy music? Can you sing well?"

"Of course he enjoys music, he's my son," Mom laughed, winking at me. I grinned back.

"Yeah I like music, but I…ah…don't sing."

"You're like your father," Mom scolded gently, still smiling. "I've only heard him sing about twice in the time I've known him."

Chiron smiled too. "Speaking of Leo," he said, turning his head to look toward the door. "I imagine you would like to see him now?"

"If you feel like you don't need any more explanation, at least for now," Mom put in quickly. "I'm sorry if I didn't explain things very well…if you have any questions…"

"No, it's okay," I said, rising from my chair. "I think I'm good."

Soter, noticing that I was getting up, rose from where he'd been flopped down on the rug and wagged his tail.

"Actually, I do want to know one thing," I said, looking curiously down at my dog. "Um, what's the deal with him?" I gestured to Soter, who was gazing at me innocently with his golden eyes. "He's acted so weird today, and then Jake, uh, he asked Soter who he was…but the way he said it made it sound like it was more complicated then just…you know…"

Mom winced. "That's a bit of a story, more of something you should hear when Chiron is giving you the more detailed version of things."

I shrugged. "Okay."

"Now, let's go see your dad," Mom said, getting up from her chair. "Come on, I'll show you to the infirmary, gods, I haven't been here for years…I'd love to see every bit of it again…you're done with him?" she asked Chiron.

"Go ahead," he said, waving us on. "I assume you're anxious to see Leo, and some of your old friends are here as well," he added.

Mom smiled. "Good to be back," she murmured almost dreamily, turning and walking from the room.

I looked down at Soter, who gave me a sort of teasing look, like, _I know things and you don't! _but he nudged my hand playfully and trotted from the room after my mom. I was about to follow, but before I did I turned to Chiron to say goodbye. He wasn't looking at me; his eyes were fixed on the opposite wall so intently I wondered if his gaze would manage to drill a hole through it.

Whatever he was thinking about, it didn't look good.

I fought back a nervous shiver and quickly followed my dog from the room.


	9. Chapter 9

**This chapter is for all who are suffering from I-have-to-go-back-to-school-this-week syndrome. Hope this chapter might cheer y'all up!**

**Percylover008—be unbreakable, girl! March in there and knock their socks off with your awesomeness, and if that doesn't work just use your muffin gun ;) **

**SatyrsUnite—unless there's been a mistake in the scheduling, I'll see you in algebra/trig! We can suffer through that like we suffered in geometry! And we can't forget the 4x4s that'll be thrown our way this year! Three cheers for math and track! *sarcasm* :P**

**Son of The Sea 100896—good luck to you this school year as well! Hopefully you'll get inspiration to write an awesome story! And manage to get some sleep too! ;) have a great year :) **

**Enjoy, y'all!**

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><p>Axl's POV<p>

"So, what exactly is this place?" I asked Mom as we left the room and walked back through the front doors of the house, Soter trotting at our heels.

She smacked her palm into her forehead. "I _knew _I left something out! Sorry, honey, this is Camp Half-Blood. It's a training camp for demigods. Chiron's the activities director here, and many demigods live here, some year round and some just for the school year or summer; it depends." She turned to me with a smile. "This was my home for a long time."

"Wow," I muttered as we crossed a small stretch of grass, heading toward a small building I assumed was the infirmary. Mom pulled open the door and waved me inside.

"Hey," Dad's voice greeted us as soon as I'd put one foot in the room. My head turned toward the back wall; Dad was sitting up on a cot, his left leg heavily bandaged. I lurched in his direction, my heart pounding.

"Hi, buddy," Dad said, smiling at me. "Oh, don't worry, I've had worse," he added when he saw where I was looking. "It doesn't even hurt that badly, trust me."

"I was worried," I muttered.

Dad's smile faltered. "I'm sorry," he said, stretching out his arms. I stepped closer and hugged him tightly. What would I do without Dad? He'd only been there for me my whole life.

"Aw," Mom said behind me. "Wish I had a camera."

Dad laughed as he let go of me, and I turned to grin at her. Now that I had seen Dad face to face, my nerves were starting to relax. I took a proper look around the infirmary and noticed something I hadn't before: Jake was here too, standing by another cot that was a few paces away; on it was a petite blonde woman who looked a lot like Ashton. I realized that this must be his mother, Rue. A medic was applying some sort of salve to a long cut on her left arm. The wound looked bad, but Rue was sitting up and talking to Jake, looking perfectly fine.

"So, has Chiron filled him in on everything?" Dad's voice asked; I turned around as Mom answered.

"Ah…bits and pieces. I gave him the simple version," Mom replied.

"Are you confused, Axl?" Dad asked, reaching over the side of the cot and ruffling Soter's ears. "I know it was probably…crazy-sounding…" He looked a bit sheepish.

"A bit," I admitted. "But I didn't faint or anything, so I guess I'm getting used to it."

Dad grinned. "Wait till you really get used to camp, buddy. Best time of my life was spent here."

Mom nodded and smiled. "I met some of my best friends here," she said softly.

"And me!" Dad piped up.

Mom grinned and leaned over to kiss Dad's cheek. "And you."

I rolled my eyes dramatically when they both turned to look at me, but I wasn't as exasperated as I pretended to be. I was just so relieved, after the trauma of this morning, that everyone was safe and (more or less) sound. I could put up with embarrassing parents just this once.

Suddenly the infirmary doors opened and Ashton walked in, a bow slung over his shoulder and grass stains prominent on the knees of his jeans. He flashed me a quick grin when he saw me before strolling over to where his parents were standing.

"Hey guys," he said to them. "Okay, Mom?"

Rue clenched her teeth, looking frustrated. "Stupid _dracaena_," she growled. "Snuck up on me. I swear, if I'd already had my knife ready, I'd've—"

"She's fine," Jake said to Ashton, and Rue glared up at him.

Ashton's blue eyes suddenly landed on me, and I turned away quickly; I hadn't meant to eavesdrop. But Ashton didn't seem bothered.

"Hey, by the way," he said, interrupting whatever Jake was saying. "I met Axl earlier." He beckoned me closer, and I walked forward nervously.

"Axl, these are my parents. Guys, this is Axl," Ashton said, stepping back a pace to make room for me.

"Um, hi," I said, addressing Rue, as I didn't know her yet. "Axl Valdez. Nice to meet you." I extended my hand and she shook it, studying me calmly.

"Pleasure," she said, giving me a small smile. "So you're Anne and Leo's son?"

"What?" Mom asked, walking up behind me. "Someone say my name?"

"So this is your son," Rue said, tipping her chin at me.

"Yep," Mom said with a smile, resting a hand on my shoulder. She then seemed to notice Ashton standing on my other side. "And this is yours?"

"Ashton Wilder," Ashton said, reaching across me to shake Mom's hand.

"Pleasure to meet you," Mom said, smiling. "It's been too long," she said, addressing nobody in particular. "I'm so behind on everything! Is anyone else here?" she asked Jake and Rue. "Anyone I know?"

"Charlie and Carter," Jake answered. "And their daughter."

Mom gasped quietly. "Charlie and Carter have a daughter? Oh my gods, why did I never know about this?"

Jake rolled his blue eyes. "Maybe it had something to do with the fact that you tried to cut yourself off from the rest of us."

Mom's expression hardened. "Leave it alone, Jake. We thought it was for the best, but I admit we were wrong."

Ashton shot me a look like, _Sorry about that. _I shook my head and smiled at him to tell him it was fine.

"So, what's their daughter's name?" Mom was asking now, her question seeming to be directed more towards Rue.

"Anya," Rue replied. "She and Ashton are pretty good friends."

"Oh, I met her!" I realized. "When I first came into camp earlier."

"You did?" Mom exclaimed. "Oh, that's great; I'd love to meet her too, and see Charlie and Carter again, and Ashley…" she trailed off.

"Hey, if you want I can show you around," Ashton offered suddenly, meeting my eyes. "I don't really have anywhere I need to be right now."

"Really?" I asked, slightly surprised. I looked up at Mom, and she nodded, so I turned back to Ashton. "That'd be great, thank you!"

"Go and have fun," said Dad from behind Jake and Mom.

"Thanks," I called to him as Ashton turned away from Rue's bed. I followed him out the doors of the infirmary, Soter of course trotting along at my heels as I looked back over my shoulder at my parents and the couple who apparently were relatives, who I'd never known about—

"Hi!"

I turned back around to see the smiling girl who'd greeted me upon my arrival to camp— Anya. She greeted Ashton with a quick hug and surprised me by hugging me too.

"Sorry for just hanging outside the door, I was waiting for you guys but I didn't want to intrude," she said. "Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah, Mom's alright," Ashton replied. He turned to me. "And how's your dad?"

"It looks kind of bad, but he's fine," I said, and Anya's blue eyes filled with sympathy.

"I'm sorry," she said, as though I'd just told her Dad would have to have his leg amputated or something. I just shrugged, not entirely sure how to respond.

"I was just about to show Axl around camp," Ashton told her. "Care to come along?"

"Sure!" she said, her face lighting up. "Come on," she said, grabbing my hand and making my cheeks feel distinctly warmer than they had a few minutes ago. "You're going to love it here!"

Ashton laughed quietly behind me as Anya took off, pulling me along behind her. And after a few seconds, I began to laugh too, surprised at how much better I felt already.


	10. Chapter 10

**It MUST be said, no matter what CERTAIN PEOPLE will argue. THANK YOU to Son of the Sea 100896, for a) not knowing a friend of mine, because together I am certain that they will manage to take over the world, and b) for giving me new confidence in this story. Your messages and reviews and helpful tips really give me a boost and I really can't thank you enough for that :)**

**Rick Riordan owns Heroes of Olympus, SatyrsUnite owns Ashton, and Percylover008 owns Anya! I do own Axl, though!**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>Axl's POV<p>

We must have looked like some bizarre version of a human chain as we ran across the grass outside the infirmary. Anya was in front, pulling me along by the hand, while Ashton had his arm linked through mine and was mock-digging his heels into the grass like he was trying to keep Anya from taking off too fast. Soter was frisking along in front of us, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth, and I was laughing while simultaneously trying not to fall down and trying to keep listening to Anya's commentary.

"And there's the canoe lake, which is really fun to have in the summer; do you like to swim? I do, I love it, and so does Ashton—"

"When you aren't pushing me in!" Ashton interrupted.

"I only did that _once_!" Anya retorted indignantly. "Anyway, there's the arts and crafts cabin, and the pegasus stables are up there…"

I tried to concentrate on what she was saying, but my mind was whirling with all that had happened since this morning. Only a few hours ago I had been getting ready to leave for another long day at school, and now I was…here, I guess. With the knowledge that my parents are…what was the word? Demigods. And with these people, Jake and Rue and Carter and Charlie, all who my parents seemed to have known for a long time, and Anya and Ashton, who were both really cool, and…it was surreal.

"And this is one of my favorite places, the archery range," Anya said, turning around to smile at me. "It's kind of odd, really. I shouldn't like archery, neither of my parents is all that good at it, but I love it. Do you?" she asked, her blue eyes studying me. "Your mom is a daughter of Apollo, right?"

I racked my brains. "Um…yeah, I think that's what she said."

Ashton snickered, and Anya shot him an exasperated look.

"So do you?" she asked me.

"Do I what?"

"Like archery."

"Oh! Yeah, actually."

"Great!" Ashton put in, elbowing me playfully. "Something we can all do together, then."

"Speaking of things to do, what is _that_?" I asked, pointing toward the lava-covered wall I had noticed earlier. Someone was quickly climbing up it, dodging rocks and rivulets of lava. As I watched, they lost their footing and fell, tumbling over and over to the bottom of the wall.

"Oh my gosh!" I gasped, watching a small crowd gather around the fallen camper. "Are they all right?"

"Oh, that happens all the time," Ashton said with an airy wave of his hand. "Don't worry, they'll be fine."

Anya must have seen the look on my face, because she gently squeezed my shoulder. "We've got good healers," she said reassuringly, smiling at me warmly. "Trust me, there've been worse injuries."

"And Axl, man, if you're gonna be one of us now, you've gotta get used to saying 'Oh my _gods_'," Ashton put in, grinning lazily. "Or '_Di Immortales_'. Or 'By Hades' foulest pair of—' "

"He gets it!" Anya quickly interrupted, but she was grinning too.

Ashton laughed, and I turned to look squarely at him.

"Dude, should I be worried that you seem to know all the methods of swearing around here?" I asked, unable to keep a grin off my face.

Ashton and Anya both started laughing, and I couldn't help it; I joined in. "I was serious!" I protested, struggling to make my face return to a neutral expression.

"Yeah, man. You look completely serious," Ashton snorted. He waved his hand back and forth across his face and switching his expression from happy to sad to angry to…I didn't know what; the facial expression of a possum that just got run over by a car, maybe?

Anya laughed, tossing a lock of her dark curly hair over her shoulder. "Do you want to get a closer look at the wall?" she asked. "Or do you want to see the cabins?"

"Well, the cabins sound kind of boring," I admitted.

Anya gasped. "Not these ones!" she said. "Trust me."

Without waiting for my response, she grabbed my hand again and took off. Soter, whose golden eyes had been flicking from person to person intently, following our conversation, barked joyfully and bolted on ahead. Ashton resumed his role of anchor, and our demented human chain continued on its merry way.

"So, you know the twelve major Olympian gods, right?" Anya asked over her shoulder.

"Uh, no, actually," I said.

Anya skidded to a halt and I crashed into her, while Ashton slammed into my back. All three of us staggered for a second, and then Anya regained her footing. She dropped my hand like it was something poisonous and placed her hands on her hips, staring me down.

"_What_?" she demanded, her stormy blue eyes wide with disbelief.

"Yeah, dude, what did you say?" Ashton asked. "It sounded like you said you didn't know the twelve major Olympian gods or something!" He laughed. "So silly of me, but that's what it sounded like!"

I grimaced apologetically. "Yeah, well. It's true; I don't know any of this stuff. I didn't know about any of this until about a few hours ago."

Ashton and Anya exchanged a glance across me, both of them obviously a little thrown.

"Well," Anya ventured at last, taking up my hand again. "Then you've got lots to learn!"

"And we've got lots to teach you!" Ashton offered with a friendly smile. "From now on, you will address me as Professor Wilder. You must bring me peanut-butter-covered marshmallows every day, and if you fail to do so, I will show you exactly how we use our weapons around here, or rather, who we use them on." He lowered his voice to a low, serious tone, and narrowed his eyes at me. "Do I make myself clear?"

I tried and failed to keep my face straight. "Yes, Ash—I mean, Professor Wilder!" I corrected myself hastily.

Ashton's face broke into a wide grin. "See?" he said proudly, clapping me on the shoulder. "You're learning already!"

"Now, c'mon, let's go!" Anya urged, pulling me forward again. "So much camp, so little time!"

I couldn't help but laugh as the three of us ran across the grassy stretch leading toward the heart of camp. It was unbelievable how much my life had changed since this morning. And I don't mean just the obvious things. I'd been heading off to school this morning ready to greet another day of blending into the scenery, being invisible, being the loner kid who prefers to fiddle with rubber bands and twist-ties and junk instead of be with people.

I looked at Anya, running ahead of me. Her long curly hair was flying back in the breeze and hitting my shoulder, and her hand was clutching mine tightly. I thought of her cheerful, inquisitive personality that I was really beginning to enjoy; she seemed like a very loyal friend. I turned around and looked at Ashton, who had his arm linked through mine again, completing the human chain. His dark blond hair was getting swept into his eyes, and his seemingly ever-present grin was—you guessed it—on his face. I wanted to laugh out loud when I thought of his personality; his happy-go-lucky style was really starting to grow on me.

_You know,_ I thought, smiling to myself and tilting my face up to the sun. _I think I could get used to this place._


	11. Chapter 11

Axl's POV

As we approached the cabins, my first thought was _wow_.

Each one was _so_cool. One was a blinding shade of gold, another was pure silver. One was decked out with metal and smokestacks, while another was covered with grass and some sort of flowered vine. One was as black as the night, and another was a riot of rainbow colors. I admired them, wondering what sort of people lived in each one. Anya had already explained that each god's children lived in their parent's cabin, but I wondered what each group of demigods was like—what were their skills? What did they look like? What were their personalities like?

"Any questions?" Anya asked, turning around and scrutinizing me with her blue eyes.

I bit my lip thoughtfully and scanned the line of cabins again, turning a question over in my mind. Ashton's parents were Jake, a son of Apollo, and Rue, a daughter of…a god or goddess I didn't know, but still, an immortal. And Anya's parents were two people named Carter and Charlie, whom my mom seemed to have been here at camp with, so they were two demigods as well. And my parents were the same way, two demigods. So…

"Hey…we're the same, aren't we?" I asked, switching my gaze from Anya to Ashton and back again. "All of our parents are demigods? Half-god, half-mortal?"

"Yeah," Anya said, sending a quick glance at Ashton. "Why?"

"So…what cabin do we belong to?"

Their facial expressions changed so quickly it unnerved me. Anya's curious look morphed to one of unease, and Ashton's smile slipped off his face.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"It's fine," Anya assured me, waving her hand. "It's just kind of an awkward subject around here. See, the thing is, we don't really belong here. I mean—we belong _here_, like, at camp, but we don't belong in the cabins. We room in the Big House—there aren't cabins for kids like us."

"Why not?"

Ashton shrugged. "Why build a whole cabin for two kids? Well, now it's three, but still."

"Wait—you mean we're the only ones?"

They both nodded.

"So far, anyway," Anya said. "But yeah."

"So…" I frowned. "Are we like…outcasts?"

Ashton winced. "Not really. But we aren't just blended in like we're the same as everyone else, you know?"

"It's not as bad as we're making it sound," Anya said, making a face. "We don't have head counselors to tell us what to do, so we can pick our activities. And we can join cabins for certain things, like if you want to try out your swordfighting skills against the Ares cabin—"

"I wouldn't," Ashton interrupted.

"—then you can join them for some arena time. But…" Anya trailed off and shrugged, tossing a few strands of curly hair off her shoulder.

"Okay, um…if you don't mind me asking, which gods do you have on your family tree?" I asked her.

She smiled. "My mother is a daughter of Hephaestus, and my father is a son of Hermes." She smiled at Ashton. "We're sort of related. His mother's godly parent is Hermes, too."

My face broke into a smile. "We're sort of related too," I said excitedly to Anya. "My father's father was Hephaestus."

She grinned. "No way! That's so cool!"

"Wait," Ashton broke in. He pointed at Anya. "Hephaestus on your mom's side, Hermes on your dad's side," he said. She nodded.

He pointed at me. "Apollo on your mom's side, Hephaestus on your dad's side, right?"

"Yeah," I said, not quite sure what he was getting at.

"Well," he said, pointing at himself. "Apollo blood from my dad, Hermes blood from my mom. Anyone else see the connection or am I going insane?"

I tilted my head, confused, but Anya shrieked, "I do! We all share blood from the same gods! Look," she said, turning to me. "Ashton and I are related through Hermes blood, you and I are related through Hephaestus blood, and you and Ashton are related through Apollo blood."

I stared at her for a second before the words sank in. "Whoa," I said. "That is really cool!"

"It is cool!" Anya exclaimed, grinning. "We're like…connected."

"We're like superheroes or something," Ashton said. "We're like a team! Team…what should our name be?"

"Triple A?" I suggested. "Axl, Anya, Ashton—all our names start with 'A'."

"I like it!" Anya said, laughing. "Team Triple A!"

"Triple A to save the day!" Ashton declared, lifting an imaginary sword high. "Oh yeah. We'll have the monsters shaking in their…whatever monsters wear!"

Anya laughed and flicked a lock of hair out of her face. "Yes, because invisible weapons work _so_ well," she teased Ashton, shoving him playfully.

Ashton stumbled backwards. "Hey! You wouldn't like it if I turned on you with my array of invisible weapons, would you?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at her in mock anger.

"Shouldn't there be a rule against maiming team members?" I cut in, grinning.

Ashton's face turned serious. "Oh, yeah, there _totally _should!" he said. "_Unless _they annoy me. Then it's perfectly acceptable—I would say necessary!"

Anya met my eyes with a look of exasperation. "See what I've had to put up with all this time before you came here?"

I couldn't keep the smile off my face. "Then it's good I came, then," I said.

"I agree, I need another sane person around," she said, stretching out her arms and hugging me. Surprised, I hugged her back.

"Aw," I heard Ashton say behind us. "Now that's cute."

Anya pulled back, suddenly looking a bit awkward. I let her go and stood there, confused. One silent second went by, then another.

"Don't I get any hugs?" Ashton's voice broke the silence. "Way to make a guy feel awesome about himself." He sniffled loudly and turned his back on us.

Anya laughed and bounced over to him, back to herself in a heartbeat. Ashton turned around and hugged her for a moment before he extended an arm to me. "Team hug!"

Laughing, I walked over to join them. Soter, who had been a few paces away investigating some pieces of armor that somebody had left nearby, romped over and ducked between my legs to sit at the center of the circle. He looked up at us with his golden eyes and wagged his tail happily.

"Man, this should be like our team policy," Ashton said. "Group hugs every day!"

Anya and I cracked up as Soter barked and wiggled like he agreed with that.

"And he can be our mascot," Anya grinned, breaking the hug to crouch down and pet Soter. My dog rolled over onto his back to let us scratch his belly the way he liked, his tail wagging like crazy.

I heard footsteps behind me and turned around. Ashton's mom, Rue, was standing behind us.

"It's almost dinnertime," she said, smiling at us. "Chiron sent me to find you three."

"Aw, c'mon, we were in the middle of a group hug," Ashton protested. Anya thumped his shoulder teasingly.

Rue's eyes flickered with warmth as she looked at Ashton. "You'll get more opportunities," she assured him. "Come on." With that, she turned around and walked away in a quick, purposeful stride. Soter got to his paws and loped after her, the rest of us following. Ashton broke into a jog and followed Rue; I went to follow, but Anya's fingers closed around my wrist.

"Hey, not to freak you out or anything," she said, looking at me seriously with her stormy blue eyes. "But, just…be prepared for dinner, okay? That's when Chiron'll tell everyone about you, and not everyone here welcomes people like us, so…yeah. Just watch your back."

She held my gaze for another second before she let go of my arm and walked away after the others. I held back for a few seconds before I followed, my fingers nervously searching through my pockets for any spare wires or anything to distract me. I wasn't looking forward to dinner.


	12. Chapter 12

**Okay, readers—I have a dilemma. PLEASE give me your opinion on this; it takes two seconds and is very much appreciated. I am painfully aware that I haven't been working on this story since, like, _ever_, and I need to know: Should I discontinue it? Or are y'all okay with me updating every so often, if at all? I have to admit, I am not as interested in the PJO fandom as I once was, but don't get me wrong—I still love it. And if you guys love this story enough to want to see it come to completion, I will because I love y'all. I just really need to know what I should do.**

**Sorry for all that. Read on!**

* * *

><p>Axl's POV<p>

Have you ever had that dream where you're going along with your life, totally just minding your own business, and then all of a sudden there's a million eyeballs staring at you and you panic because you suddenly realize you're not wearing pants or something? If you haven't, you're lying.

Well, that's pretty much how it felt as I walked into the dining pavilion behind Anya, Ashton, and Rue. Heads turned, mouths whispered, and I felt my heartbeat pick up speed. At school, I was used to being ignored. I hated this feeling of everyone's eyes on me.

Anya brushed my arm softly. "Come on," she said. "This is where we eat."

I let her lead me to a table off to the side, trying to keep my gaze down and not look at anyone in the eye. Ashton gave me a worried glance as I sat down, like he was trying to ask me what was wrong, but I couldn't look at him, either. Soter put his head in my lap, but I couldn't pet him or even push him away.

A sudden pounding noise made me jump, but Anya squeezed my shoulder reassuringly. "That's just Chiron getting our attention," she said, tipping her head towards the front of the pavilion.

"Right, sorry," I replied, facing front.

"Good evening, campers," Chiron said, smiling around at everyone. "Now, before we eat, I have some people to introduce to you. Some of you may know Leo Valdez and Anne Soleil—if I could ask you two to stand up?"

My dad stood up from a table on the other side of the pavilion, and my mom from a different one a little closer to the front. They both smiled around at everyone and waved at a couple of people who clapped before retaking their seats.

"And their son, Axl," Chiron said, his eyes going to me. "If you could stand, please?"

Anya's gentle hands prodded the small of my back. I stood up hesitantly, trying to force a smile onto my face. I heard a few snatches of whispers from the crowd—"semi-god" being the most common—and noticed more than a few unfriendly gazes. I sat down quickly, pretending not to notice my mother trying to catch my eye.

Chiron said a few more things, but I didn't listen. I was still trying to chill out as I followed Ashton and Anya up to go get some food.

Someone shoved me from behind.

"Turn around, semi-god."

Like an idiot, I turned around and looked into the eyes of a big guy, a few inches taller than I was, with dark eyes and a cold stare.

"Haven't got any Ares blood, have you?" he asked, and when I shook my head he smirked. "Good. Hate to think you might be my quarter-brother."

"Shut up, Tyler," Anya growled, turning around and glaring at the guy. "He doesn't concern you."

"Oh, gods, I hope not," Tyler, who I assumed was an Ares kid, replied, grinning at Anya. "I'd hate to be associated with any of you, really."

"Then why did you even come over here, man?" Ashton hissed from my other side. "Doesn't talking to us qualify as 'associating with us'?" He made finger quotes.

"Depends on your mindset," Tyler replied, giving Ashton a look like, _You are so immature. _His cold eyes focused on me again. "Come around my cabin anytime, I'll kick your butt, got that?"

I stared after him in disbelief as he turned and pushed his way through the crowd. "What was that?" I muttered to my friends.

"Let's get food and we'll explain," Anya said, taking my arm and steering me between some people. We piled food onto our plates and I followed them over to a bronze brazier. Ashton stepped up to it, muttered, "Hermes and Apollo," and scraped some of his food into the flames.

"Offerings for the gods," Anya explained. "Normally you'd just say one—your parent—but we give offerings to two."

Intrigued, I pushed some of my food into the fire, said, "For Apollo and Hephaestus," and walked back to the table, Anya close behind.

"So," she said as she sat down next to me and pushed Soter's nose away from her plate. "That back there was a prime example of our status here at camp."

"Tyler," said Ashton through a mouthful of food, "is one of those freaks who looks down on us. He's probably the most extreme, but don't worry, not everyone's like tha—stop it, bud!" He interrupted himself to push Soter off the bench; my dog had jumped up next to him in attempt to snitch some food.

"Sorry, he always does that," I said, smiling as I made Soter lie down under the table. He wagged his tail when I patted his head, and I turned back to the conversation. "And what's a 'semi-god'? Is it a term?"

"No," Anya answered, her stormy blue eyes darkening. "More like a name. I don't know who made it up, but people say it to be offensive. So don't go saying thanks when people call you that, like Tyler did."

"Is Tyler the worst? Are there guys who will attack us, or something?"

Anya made a face. "We've never been attacked. Don't worry, there are rules around here."

"Don't stop punks like Tyler from driving us crazy," Ashton muttered, casting a dark look at the Ares table. "I swear, one of these days I'm gonna introduce that guy to my knife."

"Tyler's worse lately because he got a quest a few months ago," Anya explained. "I forget what it was for, exactly, but he came back more arrogant than ever."

"_Gods_, I want a quest," Ashton said, his blue eyes shining excitedly. "Wouldn't it be awesome?"

"It would," Anya agreed, giving a small smile. "It'll never happen for us, though."

"It could!" Ashton argued.

"What do you do on a quest?" I asked, interested.

"Well, it depends," Anya answered. "Usually there's a prophecy given to you, and you have to do what it tells you. But I've heard you might not understand it all; prophecies are confusing."

"How do you get a quest?"

"You're chosen," Ashton answered. "It's not like you have to pass a level or anything—usually the Fates' minds are made up."

"The Fates?"

"You have way too many questions," complained Ashton, but he was smiling. "It's a good thing you're cool, or I would've stopped talking to you three hours ago."

I made a face at him and took another bite of my food. Another thought suddenly hit me.

"Do you think," I said, "that if we got a quest and succeeded, it'd make people respect us more?"

Anya's eyes narrowed as she thought. "Maybe," she said. "But we'd have to get one first. And that's not always easy."

"But before you go anywhere, Ax," Ashton said, pointing his fork at me like a weapon. "We have to get your butt in shape. Swordfighting practice, tomorrow."

"Bring it on," I replied, smiling, but my mind was straying, thinking about what it would be like to go on a quest and return a hero.

_I wonder if you're allowed to bring people, _I wondered, looking at my friends. _Because if I ever get a quest, they're coming with me. _


	13. Author's Note

Okay, first off, I'd like to say a huge I'M SORRY to those awaiting a new chapter. I shouldn't have kept putting this story off like I have, I apologize.

I have decided to discontinue this story, because I haven't worked on it at all since posting the last chapter, and I've lost all motivation to go through with it. :( I apologize to those who have reviewed and favorited. I don't deserve your appreciation! *hides face*

Anyway, if you have a few spare moments, could you please PM me and put in your opinion on whether or not I should take _The New Spark _off of FanFiction? I could leave it up, but I wouldn't be adding to it anymore.

Thanks for reading, and again, a quick PM would be appreciated.

Love y'all!

-Diamondsgirl


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